Olympic Torch Reaches Summit of Everest

Tibetan and Chinese climbers atop Mt. Everest (8848m), having successfully relayed the Olympic torch to the summit this morning, May 8, 2008. The ascent marks the first time an Olympic torch has reached the summit of the world’s tallest peak, a promise that China made when they bid to host the 2008 Olympic Games. [Photo] Xinhua / torchrelay.beijing2008.cn

A "summit assault team" of nineteen Chinese and Tibetan mountaineers reached the summit of Mt. Everest (8848m) today, May 8, at 9:18 a.m. local time, with the Olympic flame. The ascent marks the first time an Olympic torch has reached the summit of the world's tallest peak, a promise that China made when they bid to host the 2008 Olympic Games.

Seventy climbers were initially selected to begin training for this objective sixteen months ago. Led by Wang Yongfeng, about half of the original seventy began the expedition from Rongbuk Glacier base camp in late April. Poor weather, including heavy snowfall on May 2-3, slowed the team, but better conditions early this week proved encouraging. Chinese authorities had hoped the torch would reach the summit by May 10.

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Nineteen of the thirty-six climbers were selected to make the summit push, which began this morning at 1:45 a.m. from "Attack Camp" (8300m). Thirty meters from the summit, at 9:12 a.m., Norbu Zhamdu lit the torch. Climbers then passed the torch in a relay to the summit. They held up one Chinese and two Olympic flags at the top, where they stayed for about an hour.

The supplementary torch was designed by a Chinese aerospace company to stay lit in severe winds at high elevation with little oxygen. While the supplementary torch summited Everest, the main Olympic torch was in Guangdong Province, having arrived in mainland China on May 4. The host country aims to have the relay go through each Chinese province before reaching Beijing in early August.

Keeping tight control over the relay ceremony on Everest, Chinese authorities enforced a media blackout (excluding an official media team) on the north (Tibetan) side of Everest. On the south side Nepalese authorities, in compliance with China's communication and protest restrictions, confiscated satellite phones and recording devices, and evacuated journalists and a climber, William Brant Holland, who was in possession of a "Free Tibet" banner, from Everest base camp. These restrictions, compounded with last-minute decisions and changes regarding rules for climbing Everest this spring, generated extreme friction between climbers and both Chinese and Nepalese troops and officials (more information is available in the April 29, April 9 and March 19, 2008 NewsWires). According to statements made earlier this spring by the China Tibet Mountaineering Association, climbing restrictions will be lifted unconditionally beginning Sunday, May 11.

Much of the friction at base camp and beyond stems from a widespread belief that China, for decades, has imposed a "heavy-handed suppression" over the Tibet Autonomous Region; in protest, Tibet-China-related demonstrations have erupted across the globe, spurred by Olympic torch relays that visited so many cities this spring.

The Olympic torch summiting Everest comes at a poignant time, four days after Chinese officials and envoys of the Dalai Lama met in Shenzen to resolve differences. Lodi Gyari, a Dalai Lama envoy, reported that some proposals for future agendas were created, but that the two sides still "disagreed more than we agreed."

What is frightening indeed, is that China decided to put the Olympic flame on the summit on May 8 (8 being a lucky number for Chinese) and they did it with a humungous logistics, paving the road to the base camp, guarding the base camp with a hundred soldiers, sending some army to the Khumbu to guard the Khumbu icefall a couple of days prior to the final push, wiring the whole ridge with internet, phone cable and mobile antennas, ...

This is far more than propaganda for the Olympic game, but for the power of the mighty Dragon, and this is what should push us to reflect on what we saw.

Failure was not an option and all means have been resourced to achieve that goal. So guess what they can do with other goals!

Emmanuel.

2008-05-12 11:20:54

Damo

ganesh

The NE ridge of Dhaula is the normal route and what Babanov climbed.

He made no real attempt on the NW or W ridge which was their original plan (and which have been climbed/attempted before).

D

2008-05-09 22:24:04

ganesh

a new route on an 8000m peak in pure alpine style is news as well.

2008-05-09 13:13:33

Emmanuel

Well, look at the other side of the coin: now we know that our friends at base camp can finally make a bid on the summit instead of waiting in the shadow of the army.
I do not consider this as propaganda from Alpinist, it is a news and has it place here.

Emmanuel.

2008-05-09 12:44:39

SteveTheFolkie

The finest thing Alpinist could have done would have been to ignore this artifact of Nazi Germany (yep - 1936 in Berlin was the first time the torch relay happened).

As mentioned before, you're just giving China the PR they want, at the expense of the people of Tibet.

Peace

Steve

2008-05-09 11:41:36

ganesh

This is rubbish. Why do we care. Babanov puts up a new route on Dhaulagiri on the never before attempted NE ridge and Alpinist chooses to report on this non-event? Whats the deal here?

thumbs down alpinist

2008-05-09 11:05:56

E9

This kind of news give China the publicity it so much want. Its sad that a respected publication like this cant see how its being used by the PR machine in China. The political implications of the events on Everest are substantial and have great effect on the Sherpa community and there ability to survive.

Shame on China

2008-05-09 06:28:07

epsilon

Alpinist should not even report on this ridiculous non-event stunt. Remove the propoganda and all this is, is another siege ascent of the regular north face route by a bunch of climbers using oxygen. Save this sort of nonsense for ExplorersWeb and other websites that care about how many times someone has slogged up the snow slopes on Everest.